Page 8 of Witchful Thinking

“Bye, Alex.”

She lingered for a moment; her mind remembered today’s date. She smiled to herself.

“Alex?” she asked.

He turned his head toward her, expectantly.

“Happy birthday.”

Alex quirked a kind smile at her. “Thanks.”

Lucy gave a one-handed wave and left. Everything made her skin feel too tight. After all this time, he was back, and she was still here. A memory came back to her in vivid color. He’d been the merman who’d transferred in, the new kid with green hair and scales on his palms that looked like chunky glitter. She’d been the baby witch drawing symbols on her notebook, desperate to finish high school without hexing anyone. The first day of sophomore year, in English class, he had sat down next to her, looked at her charm bracelet, then her, and said, “Pretty.”

“Are you talking about the bracelet or me?” she’d asked slowly.

Alex had smiled, the type of smile that reached his eyes and hinted at fun trouble. He smiled at her as if he were a well-traveled sailor who saw home on the horizon. Her heart squeezed. The teacher started the class, ordering everyone to stop talking. Lucy, eager for an answer, started to speak. Alex pressed a finger to his lips and pointed forward for her to pay attention. From then on, Alex sat behind Lucy. Each day he picked out a charm and asked her about it. By the time it was winter, he had known about every single charm on her bracelet.

The day before winter break, he’d placed a small wrapped box on her desk, decorated with a bow.

She’d opened the gift. It was a silver seahorse charm with a red stone eye.

Dumbstruck by his thoughtfulness, she replied, “I didn’t get you anything.”

“No big deal. I thought it fit you.”

Lucy touched the seahorse charm, still here after all this time. The red stone winked at her, reminding her of youthful memories. He’d probably leave town tomorrow. She knew he was going to leave because the Grove had never been enough for him. The tea leaves told no lies.

And she knew better than to crush on some merman who saw her only as a good friend and nothing more. It was a ticket straight to frustration.

He swam the ocean depths. She avoided puddles.

She lived life under one rule: You don’t lose what you don’t let go.

She didn’t lose her heart because she never gave it away, not until she felt that soul mate click. Not to Marcus. Not to Alex. Not to the world. Life was better that way. No surprises.

Alex was a big, sparkly, sexy surprise.

There was no way she was going to have any fun with him roaming around here. Her subconscious would find a way to “bump” into him again and get to talking once more. The foolish heart she owned couldn’t focus on the festival tonight when he was so close. He drew her in, the same way the moon influences the tides with an ancient force. She could try to ignore it, but no—she knew she wasn’t strong enough to deny his aquatic magic. Lucy’s phone buzzed in rapid succession. She checked it. Ursula had sent at least five texts to their group text chain:

Hey y’all hey!

Meet you at the house in ten!

At the house. Where’s the blender?

NM found it under the sink.

Pick up lemons, limes, I forgot them! TY

Ursula was going to keep texting until they came back home. As she walked toward the car, she pulled the Madame Zora fortune from her bag. Reluctantly, she pulled her thoughts away from Alex and read the card.

Madame Zora says:

Let go of what scares you.

Seek the life you desire.

Lucky numbers

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